Social media advertising is becoming more popular with businesses, especially YouTube advertising. But creating an effective video ad can be difficult, and generating traffic from those ads can be even more challenging. However, don’t give up yet! There are a few things you can do to make sure your video ad catches your viewer’s attention quickly and keeps them watching until the end.
Struggling to Generate Traffic from Your YouTube Video Ad? Here's How to Capture the Viewer's Attention in the First 5 Seconds! Share on X
Start with an Element of Surprise
Think about all the ads you’ve seen recently. Most of the day-to-day ads we see are pretty unremarkable and predictable. You can probably count the number of ads that stand out on one hand.
Yet when we get to Christmas, there’s always huge anticipation over Christmas advertising. Everyone waits to see what the big stores come up with year after year. It’s the story, emotion, and element of surprise that keep us interested.
Research shows that our brains respond differently to the unexpected. If it’s a pleasant surprise, our pupils dilate, we release the happy hormone dopamine, and we’re more likely to remember the moment. This is perfect for marketers who want consumers to remember their video ads.
Use surprise to elicit humor or other emotions through unexpected revelation as part of your storytelling. For example, brands like Nolan’s Cheddar use surprise throughout their advertising video as you follow the story of a mouse involved with a trap.
Skittles also use surprise with their adverts, including a rainbow-eating giraffe and a yogurt boy.
Most consumers view YouTube as an entertainment channel. So quirky and intriguing videos are more likely to capture attention before hitting the “skip” ad button.
Use Stories that Relate to Your Audience
It may seem tricky to get a story across in the first five seconds, but with careful planning, it is possible. Maud Deitch, Creative Direct of Mother NY, offers up this advice to video marketers, “Think of your story like a joke. Distill it down to the punchline and then figure out how to build that with whatever tools you have at your disposal.”
Like written copy, video copy should use words like “you and “your” to speak directly to the viewer. Think about a common problem your viewer has and use a story throughout the video to address it.
For inspiration on using stories in video ads, check out YouTube videos from brands like B&W Trailer Hitches. Its videos tell the stories of the people who live and breathe the essence of its brand. It’s clear to the viewer that the brand understands their hopes, dreams, and lifestyle. It draws the viewer in as it doesn’t appear like a video ad.
Play on Emotions
Using emotions in video marketing can increase the chance of social shares and sales for advertisers. It can also lead to consumers becoming loyal customers because they feel connected when watching the ad.
Which ad are you more likely to remember – one that simply talks about the product or one that makes you laugh or cry? It’s a no-brainer, right? Emotions leave an imprint on our memories.
Studies also show that emotions have the power to influence our purchasing decisions. We’re more likely to buy from a brand that we intuitively like.
Moreover, different emotions prompt different outcomes. For example, when happy, a consumer is more likely to share the content. In contrast, sadness motivates us to act to alleviate the sadness.
Use Nostalgia to Nudge an Action
We all love a trip down memory lane. Reminiscing about the good old days where life seemed simpler. Nostalgia is a powerful tool in marketing. It’s about connecting your brand with positive emotions associated with days gone by.
Tapping into old-fashioned or comforting concepts from our pasts like traditional family values and simple lifestyles is an excellent way to capture attention.
When we watch videos that remind us of our past, we also relive the memories linked to those happy times. As a result, consumers are more likely to link those feel-good moments to your brand, creating an emotional connection.
Coca-Cola uses nostalgia brilliantly in its “Holiday’s are Coming” Christmas advertising, taking viewers back to their Christmas past.
Pique the Viewer’s Interest
We’re all inherently nosy, and playing on curiosity is a well-known marketing technique. The key to getting it right is to know the gaps in your consumer’s knowledge and figure out what your viewers want to know more about.
Start your video by posing a question or keeping the audience in suspense. Video sequential storytelling works well. By making your audience wait for the next installment, you’ll keep them interested in your brand. Make your video campaign into several steps with the final reveal in the last video. This also helps if you have complex how-to videos. You can break the content into bite-sized videos to hold the viewers’ attention.
Create Native Ads
It’s annoying when video ads pop up just as you reach an exciting part of the YouTube film you’re watching. If the viewer is frustrated before the ad starts, they’re not likely to want to continue watching.
By using all the techniques listed above, you’ll create video ads that look more like entertaining films than ads. As a result, it’ll seem less intrusive and be more likely to capture the viewer’s interest.
One study showed that two in three Gen Z, Millennial, and Gen X consumers trust branded content more than traditional advertising. Even better, according to an AppNexus Whitepaper, the CTR rate for native ads is 8.8 times higher.
Capturing Attention With Video Marketing isn’t Easy, but Get It Right, and Watch Your ROI Rise
By 2022, online videos will make up more than 82% of all consumer internet traffic. But like all marketing, you need to use your analytics and data to measure the success of your campaigns.
Experiment with different forms of video to find which resonates the most with your ideal audience. The benefits of video marketing are numerous, so persevere, and you’ll reap the rewards.
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General FAQs
Video discovery YouTube ads show up on the YouTube homepage, search results pages, and as related videos on YouTube video watch pages. Once a user clicks on the ad, the destination video page features a spot on the right-hand column where a companion banner display ad will appear.
On average, though, YouTube advertising costs are $0.10 to $0.30 per view or action, with an average daily budget of $10. That means every time someone views your ad or engages with your ad, like by clicking on a call-to-action, you pay around $0.10 to $0.30.
Once the viewer watches 30 seconds of your video, the creator is paid and the advertisers are charged. Display ads appear to the right of the featured video and above the video suggestion list. Display ads may run across all areas of YouTube, except on the homepage.
